Coquitlam Lawyer: Host Liability & Nine (9) Factors to help Hosting your Summer Party.
Host liability and alcohol; find out more:
BC has been gripped by COVID’s vice. It seems, finally, that restrictions will be loosening up. Soon, hopefully, we will be able to commence living normal lives: attending movie theatres; going to bars; and hosting events. Presumably, the residents of this Province will be drinking alcohol, and drinking a lot. If you’re planning to host an event at your home, restaurant, or bar in celebration of COVID’s inevitable demise, it is important for you to have a proper understanding of the law, and namely, host liability.
Are you hosting a party, or two, to celebrate COVID's potential, even inevitable, demise? Know the law before doing so!
For example, are you aware that “it has long been established in Canada that the operators of alcohol-serving establishments owe a duty of care to their patrons and to third parties who may be harmed by an intoxicated patron”? More commonly referred to as “host liability”, the recent of case of McLaughlin v. Cerda, 2021 BCSC 979 brings light to the liability placed upon alcohol serving bars, restaurants, and/or event hosts. As Justice Kirchner states:
[47] …The seminal case on this point is Jordan House Ltd. v. Menow, [1974] S.C.R. 239, where the Supreme Court of Canada held that a duty of care exists between commercial hosts of alcohol-serving establishments and their patrons who become intoxicated. In that case, an intoxicated patron who was well known to the establishment was ejected from the hotel bar. To get home, the patron had to walk along a busy highway and this fact was known to the employees of the bar. He was struck by a car while walking along the highway and suffered injuries. The Court held that the hotel had breached a duty it owed to the patron by turning him out of the establishment in circumstances where they knew he would be in danger as result of his intoxication. The risk to the patron was created by the hotel’s actions in overserving him alcohol and then turning him out on the street without taking measures to ensure his safety. The hotel was found liable for one third of his injuries.
[48] In Stewart v. Pettie, [1995] 1 S.C.R. 131, the Court extended this principle to third parties who may be harmed by an intoxicated patron who was served by the commercial host. There it was held that, depending on the circumstances of the case, a commercial host may have a positive obligation to act to protect not only the patron but potential third parties by taking steps to ensure the intoxicated patron does not drive.
[49] In both these cases, the critical factor giving rise to potential liability on the part of the commercial host is that the patron was intoxicated when they left the host’s establishment.
[50] These and other commercial host liability cases were recently considered in some detail in Widdowson v. Rockwell, 2017 BCSC 385. There, Justice Kent summarized a number of factors that help to define the general standards of conduct that apply to commercial hosts:
[74] While the standard of care expected of a commercial host will, in large part, be governed by the particular circumstances of any given case, there are several general standards of conduct that could well apply simply as a matter of common sense…
9 Factors to Help you Host a ‘Legally Safe’ Party:
Keeping in mind the law, and in reliance on Widdowson, supra, we recommend the following factors in assisting you host a “legally safe” party:
Ensure there are adequate supervision, monitoring and training systems in place so employees know and abide by responsible serving practices;
Ensure there is a sufficient number of serving staff on duty so that effective monitoring of alcohol consumption by patrons is possible;
Ensure employees know the signs of intoxication and the various factors that influence intoxication (gender, weight, rate of consumption, food, et cetera);
Inquire if the patron is driving and identify any "designated driver" for groups of patrons;
Know how to estimate blood-alcohol concentrations and ensure any driver does not consume more than the appropriate number of drinks to stay on the "right side" of the legal limit;
Display "tent cards" on tables, posters on walls and washrooms, and menu inserts with easy-to-read charts and information about blood-alcohol concentration;
Ask apparently-intoxicated patrons if you contact anyone to assist them or if you can get them a taxi and, if necessary, offer to pay for it;
Display posters advertising free ride-home services available in the neighbourhood; and
If the patron rejects alternative options and insists on driving, despite being urged otherwise, contact the police to seek assistance and/or provide whatever information might encourage their intervention.
Have you suffered a Personal Injury at a bar, restaurant, party, or otherwise? Contact TRI-CITY LEGAL to learn about what you may claim for again the “host”.
You can reach Vic S. Maan at (604) 628 8952; via email at: vsm@tricitylegal.ca; or fill out the form below: